Use the built-in screen reader"
FydeOS have a built-in screen reader called ChromeVox, which enables people with visual impairments to use FydeOS.
Turn screen reader on or off
You can turn ChromeVox on or off from any page by pressing Ctrl + Alt + z.
On tablets: Press and hold the Volume down + Volume up buttons for 5 seconds. While holding the buttons, you’ll hear a sound to indicate it’s working. Keep holding the buttons, then ChromeVox will start speaking.
Read a page
Tip: To hear a description of your cursor’s current position on a page, press ❖/⌘ + k.
Choose text with your cursor
You can have ChromeVox read the text under your cursor.
- To open your ChromeVox options, press ❖/⌘ + o + o.
- Turn on Speak text under the mouse.
- Move your cursor around the screen and hear text spoken aloud.
Move to different tabs and windows
| Open a new window | Ctrl + n |
|---|---|
| Open a new window in Incognito mode | Shift + Ctrl + n |
| Open a new tab | Ctrl + t |
| Open a file in the browser | Ctrl + o |
| Close the current tab | Ctrl + w |
| Close the current window | Shift + Ctrl + w |
| Reopen the last tab or window you closed | Shift + Ctrl + t |
| Go to tabs 1-8 in the window | Ctrl + 1 through Ctrl + 8 |
| Go to the last tab in the window | Ctrl + 9 |
| Go to the next tab in the window | Ctrl + Tab |
| Go to the previous tab in the window | Shift + Ctrl + Tab |
| Switch quickly between windows | Press & hold Alt, tap Tab until you get to the window you want to open, then release. |
| Open the window you used least recently | Press & hold Shift + Alt, tap Tab until you get to the window you want to open, then release. |
| Go to previous page in your browsing history | **Alt + Left arrow **FydeOS |
| Go to next page in your browsing history | **Alt + Right arrow **FydeOS |
| Open the webpage in a new tab | Type a web address (URL) in the address bar, then press Alt + Enter |
| Dock a window on the left | Alt + [ (left square bracket) |
| Dock a window on the right | Alt + ] (right square bracket) |
| Maximize window | Alt + = |
| Minimize window | Alt + - (minus) |
| Switch windows between screens (when FydeOS is connected to a monitor) | ❖/⌘ + Alt + m |
| Open tabs menu | Press and hold Ctrl, tap F2 or F1 until a tab is selected. Then press ❖/⌘ + Shift + F10. |
Move through a page with keyboard shortcuts
| Next button | ❖/⌘ + b |
|---|---|
| Previous button | ❖/⌘ + Shift + b |
| Next character | ❖/⌘ + Shift + Right ArrowFydeOS |
| Previous character | ❖/⌘ + Shift + Left arrowFydeOS |
| Next checkbox | ❖/⌘ + x |
| Previous checkbox | ❖/⌘ + Shift + x |
| Next combo box | ❖/⌘ + c |
| Previous combo box | ❖/⌘ + Shift + c |
| Next editable text area | ❖/⌘ + e |
| Previous editable text area | ❖/⌘ + Shift + e |
| Next focusable item | Tab |
| Previous focusable item | Shift + Tab |
| Next form field | ❖/⌘ + f |
| Previous form field | ❖/⌘ + Shift + f |
| Next graphic | ❖/⌘ + g |
| Previous graphic | ❖/⌘ + Shift + g |
| Next group | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + **Down arrow ** |
| Previous group | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + **Up arrow ** |
| Next heading | ❖/⌘ + h |
| Previous heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + h |
| Next Level 1 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 1 |
| Previous Level 1 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 1 |
| Next Level 2 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 2 |
| Previous Level 2 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 2 |
| Next Level 3 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 3 |
| Previous Level 3 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 3 |
| Next Level 4 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 4 |
| Previous Level 4 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 4 |
| Next Level 5 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 5 |
| Previous Level 5 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 5 |
| Next Level 6 Heading | ❖/⌘ + 6 |
| Previous Level 6 Heading | ❖/⌘ + Shift + 6 |
| Next landmark | ❖/⌘ + ; (semicolon) |
| Previous landmark | ❖/⌘ + Shift + ; (semicolon) |
| Next line | ❖/⌘ + **Down arrow ** |
| Previous line | ❖/⌘ + **Up arrow ** |
| Next link | ❖/⌘ + L |
| Previous link | ❖/⌘ + Shift + L |
| Next object | ❖/⌘ + **Right arrow ** |
| Previous object | ❖/⌘ + **Left arrow ** |
| Next table | ❖/⌘ + t |
| Previous table | ❖/⌘ + Shift + t |
| Next visited link | ❖/⌘ + v |
| Previous visited link | ❖/⌘ + Shift + v |
| Next word | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + Shift + **Right arrow ** |
| Previous word | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + Shift + **Left arrow ** |
| Go to top of page | ❖/⌘ **+ Ctrl + Left arrow ** |
| Go to bottom of page | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + **Right arrow ** |
| Start reading from current location | ❖/⌘ + r |
| Jump to details | ❖/⌘ + a + j |
Move through a page with your touchscreen
| Next word | Two-finger swipe right |
|---|---|
| Previous word | Two-finger swipe left |
| Go to top of page | Two-finger swipe up |
| Start reading from current location | Two-finger swipe down |
| Click focused item | Tap twice |
| Stop speech | Two-finger tap |
| Next line | Swipe down |
| Previous line | Swipe up |
| Next character | Swipe right |
| Previous character | Swipe left |
| Next word | Two-finger swipe right |
| Previous word | Two-finger swipe left |
| Open most recently visited menu | Four-finger tap |
| Next menu item | Swipe down within menus |
| Previous menu item | Swipe up within menus |
| Next menu heading | Swipe right within menus |
Move to different cells in a table
You can move around tables using keyboard shortcuts. To start, make sure your cursor is in the table.
To move your cursor from its current location in a table, press ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + Alt and use the arrow keys to move one cell up, down, left, or right.
| First cell in the table | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + **Left arrow **FydeOS |
|---|---|
| Last cell in the table | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + **Right arrow **FydeOS |
| First cell in current row | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + Ctrl + **Left arrow **FydeOS |
| Last cell in current row | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + Ctrl + **Right arrow **FydeOS |
| First cell in current column | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + Ctrl + **Up arrow ** |
| Last cell in current column | ❖/⌘ + Alt + Shift + Ctrl + **Down arrow ** |
Select and click
| Move through selectable items, like links and tabs | Tab |
|---|---|
| Move backward through selectable items | Shift + Tab |
| Click | Enter, or press ❖/⌘ + **Space ** |
| Select text | ❖/⌘ + s. At the end of your selection, press ❖/⌘ + s again |
tion about a page or FydeOS
| Hear title of current page | ❖/⌘ + a, then w |
|---|---|
| Hear URL of current page | ❖/⌘ + a, then u |
| Hear current date & time | ❖/⌘ + a, then d |
| Hear how much battery FydeOS has left | ❖/⌘ + o + b |
Change the voice or language
When you first turn on ChromeVox, it automatically chooses a voice based on the language you’ve chosen for FydeOS. Learn how to change your language and voice settings.
Change language
- Press and hold ❖/⌘, then press the letter o twice.
- In the Voices section, select Select current voice. Your default language shows on the button label.
- Choose another language from the list. You’ll hear the new language you’ve selected.
- When you’re done, press Ctrl + w.
Slow down, speed up, or stop spoken feedback
| Slow down | ❖/⌘ + Shift + [ (left square bracket) |
|---|---|
| Speed it up | ❖/⌘ + [ (left square bracket) |
| Stop speaking | Ctrl |
Change pitch of the ChromeVox voice
| Higher frequency | ❖/⌘ + ] (right square bracket) |
|---|---|
| Lower frequency | ❖/⌘ + Shift + ] (right square bracket) |
Use ChromeVox keyboard shortcuts
Type shortcuts faster
To turn on Sticky Mode and avoid pressing ❖/⌘ for each shortcut, quickly press the ❖/⌘ key twice. You’ll know it’s on when you hear “Sticky Mode enabled.” It will stay on until you press it twice again.
To stop holding down the ❖/⌘ key, press the ❖/⌘ key again twice. ChromeVox will say “Sticky Mode disabled.”
Use the ChromeVox menu
To open the ChromeVox menu, press ❖/⌘ + . (period). If you are on a touchscreen, you can tap the screen with 4 fingers.
You can press the left or right arrow to switch between the menus. If you are on a touchscreen, you swipe left or right.
To open a specific item from a list, press the up or down arrow and then press Enter.
- Search: Type into the bar to find a list of results from any of the ChromeVox menus.
- Jump: List of all of the ChromeVox shortcuts.
- Speech: List of speech shortcuts that includes how to increase or decrease the speech rate and pitch.
- Tabs: List of all your open tabs.
- ChromeVox: List of several ChromeVox shortcuts that includes the ChromeVox Tutorial and Learn Mode.
- Actions: List of touch-specific options
You can use the ChromeVox menu lists to navigate a web page.
- Heading: List of headings on the web page.
- Landmark: List of landmarks on the web page.
- Link: List of links on the web page.
- Form controls: List of buttons or forms on a web page.
- Table: List of tables on a web page.
Navigate the ChromeVox menu
| Turn Braille captions on/off | ❖/⌘ + a, then b |
|---|---|
| Hide the ChromeVox menus | Esc |
| Show Heading list | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + h |
| Show Landmark list | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + ; (semicolon) |
| Show Links list | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + L |
| Show Form list | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + f |
| Show Table list | ❖/⌘ + Ctrl + t |
Change spoken feedback settings
| Open Search options | ❖/⌘ + o, then o |
|---|---|
| Find in page | ❖/⌘ + / (forward slash) |
| Start reading from current location | ❖/⌘ + r |
| Turn earcons on or off | ❖/⌘ + a, then e |
| Hear punctuation marks as you type them | ❖/⌘ + a, then p |
| Hear letters as you type them | ❖/⌘ + a, then t |
| Ignore the next key press | ❖/⌘ + Shift + Esc |
Learn more about ChromeVox
| Open the ChromeVox context menu | ❖/⌘ + m |
|---|---|
| Open Search tutorial | ❖/⌘ + o, then t |
| Turn on Learn Mode (Hear the names of the keys on your keyboard) | ❖/⌘ + o, then k. Your keyboard will say the name of any key or key combination you press, and explain what the keyboard shortcut does.Note: You can also use this with connected braille displays and touch gestures on a touchscreen to hear the names of the functions. |
| Turn off Learn Mode | Ctrl + w |
| Open update notes | ❖/⌘ + o, then n |